Many aspects of modern society require ready access to communication systems through which to communicate data. A communication system through which the data is communicated includes, at a minimum, a set of communication stations. At least one of the communication stations forms a sending station, and at least another of the communication stations forms a receiving station. A communication channel interconnects the sending and receiving stations.
When data is to be communicated, such as pursuant to a communication session by which to effectuate a communication service, the sending station causes the data to be communicated upon the communication channel for delivery to the receiving station. When delivered to the receiving station, the receiving station detects the delivered data, and the receiving station operates to recover the informational content of the communicated data.
Various types of communication services are effectuated through use of various types of communication systems. Continuing advancements in communication technologies have, and continue to, permit data to be communicated in more efficient manners and to provide for the effectuation of communication services that previously were unavailable.
A radio communication system is an exemplary type of communication system. In a radio communication system, the communication channel that interconnects the sending and receiving stations comprises a radio channel. A radio channel is defined upon a radio link, i.e., a non-wireline link, that extends between the communication stations. Because communications are effectuated upon a radio channel rather than upon a channel defined in a wireline that extends between communication stations of a wireline communication system, communication stations of a radio communication system need not be positioned at locations that are permitting of connections to wirelines. And, thereby, communications are by way of a radio communication system through use of communication stations positioned at locations from which communications would not be permitted by way of wireline communication systems. Use of radio communication systems provides for the possibility, therefore, of increased availability of communications. Additionally, the radio communication system is implementable as a mobile communication system in which one or more of the communication stations of the radio communication system is provided with communication mobility. Advancements in digital communication techniques are amongst the advancements in communication technologies that have been applied to, and deployed in, radio communication systems. Various communication advantages are provided through the use of digital communication techniques. More efficient data communications, for instance, are possible, permitting bandwidth allocations to a communication system to be utilized more efficiently.
A cellular communication system is a type of mobile radio communication system. Successive generations of cellular communication systems have been developed and deployed to provide for communications therethrough. Significant portions of the populated areas of the world are encompassed by the network parts of cellular communication systems.
While early-generation, cellular communication systems generally utilized analog communication techniques, newer-generation systems generally utilize digital communication techniques. While the early-generation systems generally were used solely for voice communications, increasingly, cellular communication systems are utilized to effectuate data intensive communication services.
A so-called, CDMA2000 cellular communication system, for instance, provides for multi-rate data communication services. Data communication schemes, e.g., a 1xEV-DV communication scheme or a 1xEV-DO communication scheme for use in a CDMA2000 communication system provides for the communication of data at high, and variable, data rates. As in other variants of communication systems that utilize code division multiplexing, the power levels at which data is communicated must be closely controlled to ensure that the power level at which data is communicated is not so high as to interfere with other concurrently-communicated data. Power control schemes are used to control the power levels of the communicated data.
The power level at which data is communicated is dependent upon various factors, including the amount of concurrent communications within a specified area. As the level of communications, i.e., the number of users, varies, the power availability, available for allocation to a particular set of communication stations, changes. The manner by which data is communicated pursuant to a 1xEV-DV communication service is dependent upon, amongst other things, channel conditions. When conditions are good, higher order modulation schemes are utilized with high code rate FEC (frame error control) to facilitate maximization of data throughput. When communication conditions are poor, the modulation order is reduced and the code rate FEC is also reduced. Channel conditions are susceptible to quick changes, and a reporting mechanism is required by which quickly to determine and to report upon the channel conditions. And, in particular, a carrier-to-interference ratio, C/I, determination and report is needed to be made to make the modulation and FEC decisions.
What is needed, therefore, is a manner by which to calculate the carrier-to-interference ratio, or other communication channel indication, quickly.
It is in light of this background information related to communications in a radio communication system that the significant improvements of the present invention have evolved.